I Heard
by A Crazy Elephant
Summary: Something I’ve been pondering recently. . . A short fic about the whispers and funny looks Harry was getting when he first arrived at Hogwarts. Set in Book 5. Written from a first year’s POV


((Author's Rants: Totally making up most of the names and characters. But, please, read, review, and enjoy! ))

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and any related characters or ideas belong solely to J.K. Rowling. Besides, would I really be writing a fanfic if I owned HP?

"Hey, look at that kid! The one with the black hair, sitting by those prefects! That's him!"

"Who?" I craned my neck to see who Euan was talking about.

"Harry Potter! Mum says he's mad and dangerous." Euan whispered. I couldn't help but notice a note of excited enthusiasm is his voice, as if being placed in the same house as someone who was said to be insane was his idea of winning the lottery.

"Mad and dangerous?" I echoed. I personally didn't want to be located so close to someone who could, if what Euan said was true, potentially tear my head off or something of the like.

"Yeah," A fifth year girl with a long dark braid, interjected. "Last year after he came out of the Triwizard maze with Cedric Diggory's body, he was spreading all of this nonsense that he had seen You-Know-Who come back! And Dumbledor believed him! It was all over the _Daily Prophet_!"

"What?" My parents were what the wizarding community called "Muggles". They didn't subscribe to the Daily Prophet. Only discovering that there was such a thing as magic mere weeks ago, I was still in the dark about anything that had to do with magic. Even the simplest incantations amazed me- the food for the feast appearing from thin air had been quite a revelation.

"_Witch Weekly_ too!" The fifth year's friend said from around the girl. "Absolutly _everyone_ is talking about it."

"Even the Ministry thinks he's mad." Euan said, ecstatically. He seemed to find this a treat to be sitting near to an infamous celebrity.

"The government believes what's written in the tabloids?" I asked over my mashed potatoes. The kid didn't look dangerous to me. "The Mad and Dangerous Harry Potter" didn't look mad or dangerous- sitting with his friends, carrying on a perfectly civilized conversation with a ghost whose head was perilously close to falling from his shoulders.

"_Witch Weekly _and the _Daily Prophet_ aren't tabloids! They're reliable news sources." The fifth year girl who had spoken first snapped. She apparently thought I was questioning the accuracy of her sources.

"Leo didn't know!" Euan informed her. "His parents are Muggles!" I was touched that Euan, whom I had met only several hours prior, was defending me against a much older, more experienced witch. The girl, called 'Pavarti' by her friend, Turned back to her conversation and pretended we didn't exist.

After we had finished eating and the remains of the deserts had vanished, the headmaster rose in his chair and proceeded to deliver start of term announcements. The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher spoke a piece in between the reminder not to enter the forest on the school grounds and the Quidditch (what ever that was) team tryouts. When the headmaster had finished, we were dismissed to our dormitories.

Standing, more people appeared to have noticed Harry Potter. Rumors were flying about rather quickly. Most people seemed to be giving him a wide berth. Potter obviously picked up on this as well and glared at us as Euan whispered, "I heard he eats first years for breakfast!"

"That's nothing! I heard his best friend is a giant!" A girl in our year piped up.

"I heard he hoodwinked the Goblet of Fire to take his name for the Triwizard Tournament! And Dumbledor let him compete!"

"The Prophet says he's desperate for more attention." Potter did not seem to appreciate his fame. I thought he looked as if he'd rather be anything BUT the center of attention. He scowled as his one of his prefect friends shouted at us "HEY MIDGETS! THIS WAY!!" The other perfect, a girl with bushy brown hair, shot a disapproving look at her counterpart and summoned us over. The Potter boy vanished into the crowd and the whispers about him slowly disappeared. I had a feeling it wouldn't be long before they would start up again. . .

((A/R: There you have it. Whadaya think?))


End file.
